Children of God cult survivor says women were ‘prostitutes for Jesus’ and kids abused

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The granddaughter of Children of God cult leader David Berg has told of how she was pressured into sex with men from as early as six-years-old.

Faith Jones, from Las Vegas, compared her life in the cult to being a nun but with “a lot of sex involved”.

The notorious Children of God cult saw members believe in ”The Law of Love”, which told women to show love to Jesus through having sex with men.

Her grandfather Berg founded the group, which was later called The Family, in 1968.

The Children of God were known for there vile sex practices and hit with allegations of abuse for sexual relations between adults and children.



Faith Jones has revealed details of living in her grandfather’s cult in her new book

Speaking to the New York Post, Jones said: “It took me a long time to realize that being coerced into having sex with somebody based on being told that God will punish you, or out of fear of humiliation, is the same as rape.”

Jones was actually born in Hong Kong after the cult expanded into Asia and grew up as the seventh child in the polygamous family.



Jones was raised with siblings by her father Hosea, his first wife Esther (right) and her mother, Ruthie (left)

She was allowed no schooling and instead spent hours praying and doing household chores.

When she was four, her father Hosea and mother (Esther, her father’s first wife, and Ruthie, her biological mother), moved her and her half-siblings to Macau after the group was exposed in a Hong Kong Newspaper.

They originally lived in poverty with no toilet or electricity but her father turned the property into a liveable commune.



Jones was raised in the Children of God cult until she was 22

At a young age, Jones says she had sexual images thrust upon her from aroused male genitals in a colouring book to the Holy Spirit was depicted as a “horny goddess wearing only a heart-shaped bikini held on with pearl strings.”

Jones has published a memoir on her experiences in the cult, which she has titled: ‘My Life As a Sex Cult Nun’.



Berg founded Children of God in 1968 out of Huntington Beach, California

She reveals that inside the cult sex is a service to God and refusing to have sex is “being hard and selfish” and going against God’s will.

Jones added: “We were in a religious order, living communally, no possessions, hours spent in prayer and reading, proselytizing.

“But the difference is that most religious orders ban sex; we emphasized it.”

When she was six, he ‘Uncle Jeff’ showed her how to pleasure him with her hands and at the age of 10, two uncles French kissed her.



Members of the Children of God marched in New York City in the 1970s

At the same age, Jones had already appeared with her mother Ruthie in a video called Asian Angels, Volume Two, which was confiscated by the government as child pornography.

She writes about her male siblings and how by the age of 10, they had all lost their virginity.

Jones said the boys would get to pick which ‘auntie’ they wanted to have “sexy time” with and would then go into a different room.



Jones has revealed that she never met Berg during her time in the cult

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She also recalls how women would go on “Flighty Fishing” missions where woman would go and prostitute themselves for Christ.

They would either seduce the men for favours or to join the cult in their cause.

Jones was able to escape the Family at the age of 22 and got a college degree by attending Berkeley Law after her parents supported her decision to leave.

Her dad got a job at a hotel in Macau to fund her move back to the US.

Jones says her parents never sexually abused her themselves and have since apologised for the trauma they put her through.

If you or somebody you know has been affected by this story, contact Victim Support for free, confidential advice on 08 08 16 89 111 or visit their website, www.victimsupport.org.uk.

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